Trump Told Staff He Wants Corporate Tax Rate Cut to 15%

By Michael C. Bender, Richard Rubin and Nick Timiraos

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump has ordered White House aides to accelerate efforts to draft a tax plan slashing the corporate rate to 15% and prioritizing cuts in tax rates over an attempt to not increase the deficit, according to a person familiar with the directive.

During a meeting inside the Oval Office last week, Mr. Trump told staff he wants a massive tax cut to sell to the American people, the person said. It was less important to him if the plan loses revenue. Mr. Trump told his team to “get it done,” in time to release a plan by Wednesday.

A White House spokesman didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and National Economic Council Director Gary Cohn are scheduled to meet Tuesday to discuss Mr. Trump’s tax proposals with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, House Speaker Paul Ryan, Senate Finance Chairman Orrin Hatch and House Ways and Means Chairman Kevin Brady of Texas. The meeting comes in advance of a Wednesday announcement by Mr. Trump about his principles for tax policy.

“This is part of our continuing dialogue with the Trump administration on tax reform,” said AshLee Strong, a spokeswoman for Mr. Ryan.

Write to Michael C. Bender at Mike.Bender@wsj.com, Richard Rubin at richard.rubin@wsj.com and Nick Timiraos at nick.timiraos@wsj.com

Breaking the story

Michael C. Bender, Richard Rubin and Nick Timiraos broke the news that President Donald Trump has ordered White House aides to accelerate efforts to draft a tax plan slashing the corporate rate to 15%.

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